They Were Strangers
by Shiga
Summary: On shot song fic. Their journey is over but where does this leave Kagome and Inuyasha? Will they be stubborn and seperated or will they share their feelings? (song "We Were Strangers)


Kagome sat in the field by the well, her hair whipping in the wind. It was so peaceful in the feudal era. It had been ever since Naraku was defeated over a year ago. Now at seventeen, Kagome's journey was over. The completed jewel hung around her neck and Kagome placed her hand on it subconsciously. When they had defeated Naraku the jewel had broken once more causing them to have to go on another quest for the jewel shards, but now she had done finally it. Each shard was in place with the help of her newly acquired friends. Her thoughts immediately drifted to that gruff hanyou she had spent all these years with and bonded with the most.

"Inuyasha." The name spilled over her lips and brought a sense of calming through her. He had been with her since day one and though they had their differences, she had grown to love the hanyou. He had sworn to protect her and she held him up to that even today.

We were strangers  
Starting out on a journey  
Never dreaming what we'd have to go through

When she first met him he had wanted to kill her for the jewel she possessed. She had to go as far as a submission spell in order to keep him from harming her. She didn't need it anymore but it was still fun knowing she was sometimes in control. She knew she overused it sometimes but she would never admit that to his face.

They had started their quest as enemies but grew to be friends. She had never thought it would happen, if anything she had been disappointed at their forced partnership. He was rude and crude to her whenever he got the chance. Slowly but surely he had softened, and with that her feelings changed.

Now here we are  
And I'm suddenly standing  
At the beginning with you

A rustle in the wind brought Kagome's attention to the forest line. She could sense him there. He was looking at her through the trees. It made her feel all the more relaxed and she let her eyes close.

It would be the end of their adventure as soon as she could purify the jewel. She knew it would end but she wasn't worried. He was still there beside her and in her heart he always would be.

No one told me I was going to find you  
Unexpected, what you did to my heart

Inuyasha looked over at Kagome in the field. He knew she could sense him and a part of him wanted that. He wanted her to feel safe in his presence. She was one of the only ones who truly took his protection with open arms. Most would have resented fortification from a half demon.

That first day he had seen her he thought she was Kikyou. She looked so much like her yet now he couldn't see the similarities. The more he talked to Kagome and looked at Kagome the more he realized that's who she was, Kagome. Her own person and she would never be Kikyou.

When that thought had first popped into his head he felt bitter. He wanted Kikyou back and not her reincarnation. Not this girl who could never live up to Kikyou. But after some thought he saw that it was a good thing. He didn't want another Kikyou. Kagome was different from Kikyou in only good ways.

He had loved Kikyou, or at least thought he did. Maybe it wasn't love but his way of trying to compensate for a life of loneliness. Kikyou wanted him to change for her, love isn't about changing. He knew that now, Kagome had taught him. Love is about accepting the other person's faults and loving them all the same. Kagome liked him as a hanyou; she never wanted him to change into a human, never into a full demon. Though he was tainted she stuck by him and never thought lowly of him.

In the two years he had known her she had melted him. The barrier he kept resurrected had fallen and he opened up. His heart had now changed into something far better then it was before her. He felt normal yet special when she was around. Not tainted and evil. She saw a good in him he didn't even see, and then she brought it out. But most of all she taught him to love another being so deeply. So deeply that he was willing to risk his life as long as she was safe.

When I lost hope  
You were there to remind me  
This is the start

The all-powerful hanyou sometimes didn't have a positive perspective. He seemed like he thought he was unbeatable but even he had breaking points. When he turned into a full demon and thought his friends would leave him she sat with him. She reassured him. She said she wouldn't leave him. She rekindled his hope time and time again. Sometimes he thought she knew him better then he knew himself. It was a scary yet thrilling feeling.

Life is a road, and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep flowing  
Life is a road, now and forever  
Wonderful journey

"Well are you going to stand there or come over here?" Kagome's voice broke through his musings. She wasn't facing him, and her eyes were still closed. He wondered if she really was talking to him at all. "Inuyasha?" Inuyasha knew she was talking to him now and decided he may as well come on out. No point in pretending to not be there when he knew she already sensed him.

He walked up to her and just stood there. "What do you want wench?" though his tone was harsh Kagome cracked open an eye and smiled.

"It's such a nice day, why don't you sit down with me?" Her request was so soft, another thing he loved about her. She requested not demanded. He obeyed and sat in his usual stance with his hand in his kimono.

"Why are you so happy today?" he snorted. Kagome opened her eyes fully and blinked at the warm sunlight.

"I'm alive, the jewel is complete," 'and I'm with you.' "and it's a gorgeous day!" ?" She kept the "I'm with you" to herself. "Why wouldn't I be happy?" Maybe it would be better if she confessed her love to him but she was to shy. Kikyou may be gone but he still loved her and she didn't want to hear it from his lips. She was…scared.

Inuyasha had half hoped she would say she was happy he was there, but of course she didn't. Why would she say that? He had never made an innuendo that he liked her that way, and he couldn't expect her to say she loved him. He glanced at her through the corner of his eye and saw her radiant smile.

"Why aren't you happy? Our quest is over Inuyasha. It's been a great adventure, but we can finally relax."

I'll be there when the world stops turning  
I'll be there when the storm is through  
at the end I want to be standing at the beginning with you.

That was exactly what was bothering him. It was the end and where would she go? Would she stay? Would she leave? Once the jewel was purified would she admit she never even wanted to be here. No matter what the answer to that was he still wanted to be with her. Even if she said she would never come back his heart would belong to her.

Kagome was worried that she didn't have anything left for her here either. Love. Her heart breathed that word but he may not feel for her as she does for him. She had promised him she'd be there no matter what and that was true. She'd go to the ends of the earth if he requested it of her.

After all that had happened, after all the pain they had endured, they had the same thought. What will happen now that it's over?

Inuyasha finally decided to answer her question. "I am happy." was his only response. She looked at him but he didn't look happy. He looked serious and in thought, anything but joyful.

"If we did it again, would you want her to be alive? If you could change our journey, would you replace me for her?" Kagome's question shocked her. Where had she gotten the courage to say that? The question she had been dreading, the question that's answer would tear her from the inside out, she'd just asked it.

Inuyasha was equally surprised but for a different reason. She still thought his heart was with Kikyou, but it wasn't. No matter how he thought of it, her death was for the better. If she hadn't died he would have never met Kagome, he would have never made friends, he would have never truly loved.

"After all that's happened, I think…" Inuyasha trailed off. His mind screamed for him to say it, his heart begged for him to as well, but his stubbornness tried to fight them both. Finally he put on his regular rough exterior. "What a dumb question, wench!" Kagome looked hurt and he realized she must think that mean yes to her questions.

"Even though you say that, and even though it hurts, I can say in all honesty if I did it all again, I wouldn't change a thing. I wouldn't change your relationship with Kikyou and I wouldn't even change our fights with Naraku. But most of all, if this quest started all over again, I would want to be standing with you still by my side." Kagome smiled after her monologue though she looked down at her hands. She was embarrassed that she had so much courage suddenly.

Inuyasha's eyes widened. She wouldn't trade him for a human, a full demon, or someone less rude? She would still want to be attacked by him, still want to be hurt by him mentally? "Why?"

We were strangers  
On a crazy adventure  
Never dreaming how are dreams could come true

Kagome smiled again, that smile that had brought him so much hope before. "Because Inuyasha, all those things built character and I'm a better person for it."

Inuyasha flattened his ears to his head. "Right, character builders." Inuyasha grumbled. It wasn't because she wanted to be with him at all. It was because they made her stronger. He should have known.

"I was just a regular girl before I fell in the well. My life was basically uneventful and boring! Then I was hurdled into this trek across Japan and I still can't believe it. I look around and I think 'Wow! I'm really five hundred years in the past'. I remember in those first days I wanted to go back to my time so bad but not anymore. It was fate that brought me here and I believe that. Because of this journey I got new friends, I'm a lot stronger," 'I fell in love for the first time' "and I realized how lucky I am to have my mother, brother and grandpa." Kagome sighed and fell back in the grass. Those other things weren't as important as her first love. It was an invigorating feeling.

When she was younger she had made a wish on a shooting star. She wished that she would find a romance like the ones on TV. Her wish had come true. Sure Inuyasha wasn't perfect and the romance was anything but 'romantic', but it was perfect in her heart. She wouldn't have asked for anything else.

Inuyasha listened to her speak attentively. He wanted to say something. He wanted to say that because of her he learned too. He learned about hope, about trust, about how to open up sometimes. Because of her he felt like a little kid, giddy inside, though he never showed it. Her smile made him happy, her tears made him sad. Her very being affected him. How could he tell her, it wasn't possible. She'd laugh at him. Laugh at the dirty half demon that fell in love with someone as pure as her. But still in the back of his mind he embraced what he felt. This was all he ever wanted, she gave him a place to belong. A home.

Now here we stand  
Unafraid of the future  
At the beginning with you

"What are you going to do when the jewel is gone?" Inuyasha heard himself ask, his voice working on it's own accord and asking what it wanted. Kagome's face looked deep in thought for a moment. She immediately sat up again and opened her eyes. She looked into his honey colored orbs as if she was reading his soul.

"What do you want me to do?" It was a question he didn't know if he could answer, but he was going to try.

"What I want isn't important. I just want to see you happy. I'm not scared of your choice because I know it will be the right one for you." Kagome was shocked. His answer held such depth, such emotion, his eyes were the same. She looked for any traces of insincerity but he kept on staring at her, never breaking eye contact.

And life is a road, and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep flowing  
Life is a road, now and forever  
Wonderful journey

"In the future there is no place for me anymore. Attending school is a lost cause no matter how I look at it. I'm two whole years behind and catching up will be murder. My family may be there but I don't feel like I should be with them there. I still love them but I don't feel at home anymore. Is there a place for me here?" The corners of Kagome's mouth lifted into a small smile.

"Feh, what do you think?" Though his answer looked like he didn't care Kagome could see through it. In Inuyasha, that meant only if you want one.

"Well Sango and Miroku are going to be together and there isn't a place for me there. Shippou needs a family and living with them would be best. I don't fit in there anywhere. So Inuyasha, where do I belong here?" She was probing him, they both knew it. She was no longer scared to hear his reply. She just wanted one. If he rejected her she'd be hurt but somehow she couldn't even grasp him doing that.

'With me. Say it baka!" His heart was screaming it. He could feel it swelling. The words were on his tongue. They wanted to be released. "You belong… you belong… with me… and Sango and Miroku and Shippou too. They all love you. Sure they'll be a family but you can be part of their family." Inuyasha gave himself a mental slap. He could have left it with just me but no; he had to add everyone so it seemed impersonal. He could have said we all love you but no, that would have only worked in his favour. He just had to say they so he would stay private. 'Baka.'

I'll be there when the world stops turning  
I'll be there when the storm is through  
At the end I want to be standing at the beginning  
With you

Kagome's head drooped. Her smile faded. "Yeah, I guess your right." She sighed. He didn't directly reject her, he did it subtle. He wanted to be her friend and nothing more. She couldn't blame him. She really wanted to translate what he said into something positive but this time she couldn't. He seemed like he was telling her exactly what he felt.

"We'll be here for you Kagome. We'll be here forever. Just like you've stood by our side through thick and thin, we'll do the same. You're my…best friend." Best friend? Best friend? God was he being an idiot. Why was he being so general? Was it so hard to say your more then just my friend? Even if he had left it at that she could have filled in the rest. It would have been better then that.

"I'll be here for you too. You'll always be my best friend." Kagome's smile returned but it lacked the sheen of before. It was a plastered smile to hide her disappointment. She'd always just be a friend. She was beginning to hate that word more and more. His friendship was better then nothing but it still wasn't enough. Deep down it would never be enough.

I knew there was somebody somewhere  
Like me alone in the dark

"I had a very lonely life and you filled that void Kagome. Now I have friends because of you and I would trust you with my life." Those were strong words coming from such a stubborn hanyou.

Kagome would take them. They weren't what she wanted exactly but she'd take his confession and she'd hold it close. She could feel the tears begging to be released but she fought them back.

"And…" oh wait he wasn't done at all. Kagome looked into his eyes once more and she saw the turmoil.

"Yes?" she urged, curiosity tugging at her very being.

Now I know my dream will live on  
I've been waiting so long  
Nothing's going to tear us apart

"And… I love you." Kagome's mouth dropped, Inuyasha winced. He did it, there. Now to see what she would do. Would she take his confession for what it was and believe him? Would she think it was a joke?

'Finally." Kagome's mind cried. She practically flew into his arms and held him tight.

"I love you too." She whispered. "I always have." Inuyasha smiled a genuine smile. That wasn't so hard. He nestled his nose in her hair and inhaled that scent he had loved for so long. The beautiful scent that was Kagome. Her lilac shampoo touched his nose and a deep tranquility filled him.

And life is a road, and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep going on  
Starting out on a journey  
Life is a road and I want to keep going  
Love is a river I want to keep flowing

Kagome pulled back, tears in her eyes. Inuyasha pouted when he saw them and brushed them away with a clawed finger.

"What is it?" he questioned. Was she regretting saying she loved him? Was she really just lying so she wouldn't embarrass him?

"I'm just so happy." She confessed. Kagome had never been so happy in her life. This is what she had always wanted and now that it was happening she was cherishing it. She was going to throw herself into his arms again but instead a pair of lips on hers intercepted her plan. Her eyes fluttered closed at the hanyou's gentle gesture. He broke the kiss a second later and opened his amber eyes. The emotions coursing through them were incredible and Kagome tried to sort out each one.

Trust, reassurance, joy, and love were the positive ones. Fear of rejection was the only bad one

Inuyasha prayed that wasn't to forward. He waited for her to slap him but was surprised when she did nothing of the sort.

Kagome smiled in an attempt to heal his fear and it seemed to work because he smiled back. She laid her head on his chest and his arms encircled her tightly.

"You know, I'm sure glad I didn't kill you that day." Inuyasha whispered.

"Gee thanks dog boy." Kagome laughed lightly and snuggled further into his arms.

"You know I have decided I actually would change something." Inuyasha suddenly proclaimed. Kagome tensed and he could hear her heart beat quicken in fear.

"What?" her voice was shaky. If he said anything about Kikyou, she was going to die.

"I would have killed that wimpy wolf! And maybe shown my brother a thing or two as well!" Kagome laughed at that and shook her head.

"Baka!" Inuyasha smiled and lifted her chin to look at him.

"Wench." He countered. Kagome wrinkled her nose at his antics.

"You never change."

"Do you want me to change?" he answered. Kagome shook her head no.

"No, I like you just the way you are. The rude name calling hanyou I fell in love with. I never want you to change." Inuyasha began to lean in for another kiss.

"And Kagome, that's why I love you."

In the end I'll still be standing at the beginning with you


End file.
